Dispatches from the sunburned wastelands

I promised more info on the fabulous National Museum of Australia, and here it is. No, the pic on the right is not a big Lego block building...If there is one reason to come to Canberra, it's to see this museum (there doesn't seem to be any other reason to come here, but that's another story...).
First of all, it's free, which is always a big plus in such n expensive city. Then there's the fascinating architecture, which tells its own story - for example, some of the windows are shaped like indigenous leaves.
Once inside, the visitor is whisked away into a multimedia rotating theatre, where life, the universe and everything is explained with mind-blowing sound and vision - moving video screens, surround sound, and a fascinating narrative tells the story of Australia, the land and its people. What I particularly liked, was the fact that they did not shy away from the aboriginal issue...The whole experience was more like a modern art installation than a boring museum video (which was what we were expecting). The rest of the museum is just as fascinating, with vast spaces devoted to Aus's earlier (pre-western) history. Equally amazing was the concept of displaying mostly copies of aboriginal artefacts, while the original pieces were given back to its proper owners...How's that, British Museum people?

The pic below was taken just outside the museum, in the Garden of Moths (Hannelie i standing next to a moth sculpture) - There are these giant moths that live in the mountains around Canberra, and it gets so bad in summer that some of the city lights are turned off, so that the moths won't be attracted to it...

Posted by HannesB at 2:04 PM Comments